Lecture on the Great Law and Wampum Belts

Introduction

• Speaker: Rick Hill, Senior Project Coordinator at Deyohahage, Indigenous Knowledge Centre at Six Nations Polytechnic.
• Topic: Formation of the Great Law, teachings of the peacemaker, and significance of wampum belts.

Historical Context

• Depictions: Early and modern depictions of the peacemaker and Haudenosaunee chiefs.
• Key Figures: Peacemaker, Hayawenta, Taradaho.

Wampum Belts

• Importance: Made from clamshells, crucial to the Haudenosaunee and other Native nations.
• Function: Used to codify history and teachings, requiring trained interpreters.
• Colors: White represents peace and purity, purple represents death and darkness.

The Great Law

• Principles: Aimed at peace, involves maintaining a 'good mind.'
• Condolence Ceremony: Process to restore the mind, involving symbolic acts like wiping tears and clearing the throat.
• Chiefs' Roles: Restoring and maintaining peace, using wampum beads to symbolize authority.

Symbolism and Teachings

• Circle Wampum: Encircles the people, representing unity.
• Peacemaker's Bundle of Arrows: Symbol of strength in unity.
• Tree of Peace: Represents enduring peace, protected by chiefs.

Women’s Role

• Clan Mothers: Responsibilities include nominating chiefs and ensuring they fulfill their duties.
• Women's Nomination Belt: Symbolizes unity and the role of women in governance.

Confederacy and Community

• Council Fire: Symbolizes unity, used in councils.
• Expansion: Acknowledgement of the Tuscaroras as part of the Six Nations.

Wampum Belts in Modern Context

• Cultural Recovery: Efforts to recover and understand wampum belts and their teachings.
• Educational Initiatives: Recitations of the Great Law across communities to maintain cultural knowledge.

Conclusion

• Future Plans: Continued education and lectures to explore the significance of wampum in contemporary society.